Member-only eCommerce

A member-only store requires account approval before buyers can browse products or place orders. This model serves B2B distributors, trade-only suppliers, and professional networks that verify buyer credentials before granting catalog access. Spree Commerce manages the full lifecycle (application, approval, segmented catalog access, customer-specific pricing) through customer groups, gated storefronts, and role-based permissions in its free Community Edition.

Approval-based access control works at the account level. New buyers submit an application, an admin reviews and assigns them to a customer group, and the platform grants access to that group’s catalog and pricing. Spree Commerce supports this natively through Customer Groups and role-based access, so approved buyers see only the products and prices assigned to their segment.

Customer-specific pricing assigns different price lists to different buyer groups based on their contract, volume tier, or account type. A wholesale distributor might show one price to retail partners and another to institutional buyers for the same product. Spree Commerce handles this through Price Lists linked to Customer Segments, with no per-transaction fees on any pricing tier.

Yes. Open source platforms give teams full control over the approval workflow, access rules, and customer group logic without depending on third-party plugins or app store add-ons. Spree Commerce includes gated access, customer groups, and role-based permissions in its free Community Edition, so there are no feature gates or per-user fees.

Buyer groups segment a customer base so each group sees its own catalog, pricing, and checkout flow. A construction supply company might create groups for contractors, architects, and government agencies, each with different product visibility and volume discounts. Spree Commerce assigns new buyers to a customer group during approval, applies group-specific price lists and catalog rules automatically, and scopes promotions to the groups that qualify.

A members-only store controls who can access the entire storefront, requiring approval before any browsing or purchasing. A B2B customer portal is a self-service interface for existing customers to manage orders, reorders, and account details. Spree Commerce supports both models from one platform: gated storefront access with approval workflows for the members-only case, and Buyer Organizations with role-based purchasing, approval chains, and reorder flows for the customer-portal case in its Enterprise Edition.

Approval workflows route new buyer applications through a review step before granting store access. The workflow typically captures business credentials, assigns the buyer to a customer group with appropriate pricing, and triggers a welcome notification with login details. Spree Commerce supports custom approval logic through its extensibility framework, letting teams tailor the flow to their verification requirements.